NEW DELHI: Former Navy Chief Admiral Sardari Mathradas Nanda, under whose leadership the Navy fought its first major battle by carrying out daring attacks on Karachi during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, passed away here on Monday night after a prolonged illness. He was 94.
The mortal remains of Nanda were cremated with full military honours at the Brar Square crematorium in Delhi Cantonment.
Admiral Nanda’s brave decisions might have gone a long way to raise the Navy into a credible fighting force, but the post- retirement phase of his life remained in the shadow of controversies.
Nanda and his son Suresh, also an ex-Navy officer, were linked to several arms deals. The CBI was investigating the role of Nandas in the German HDW submarine deal. Suresh is considered to be the country’s most powerful arms dealer.
While the entire naval top brass, including Admiral Sureesh Mehta, were present at the crematorium, the Army and Air Force chiefs were conspicuous by their absence. There was no significant representation from the Ministry of Defence either.
In his condolence message, Sureesh Mehta claimed that in Nanda the country has lost a hero and a visionary leader who contributed significantly to the growth of the modern Indian Navy.
“He will always be remembered in the most glowing terms for his leadership of the Indian Navy during the Indo-Pak Conflict of 1971, in which the Indian Navy carved its name in golden letters in the annals of history by its sterling offensive actions,” he said. Before the 1971 war, the Navy was seen as a poor cousin of the much more powerful Army and the Air Force.
Nanda was at the helm of affairs during the 1971 Indo-Pak war and planned the daring raid on Karachi harbour by towing Russian made Osa class missile boats halfway into the Pakistani waters and unleashing them on the port city.